Pocahontas West Virginia trip/SV review with pics

[BaltimoreGS]

Well I finally got a chance to put some miles on the SV650 (956.8 to be exact) on some of the most scenic roads on the east coast.  If you are anywhere in the area I highly recommend checking it out.  Plan on spending a week there if you really want to take in all that Pocahontas County has to offer.  And having toured on both bikes now I can give an honest review of the two.  Both my SV and my '01 GS500 are mostly stock. The only part not stock on the SV is the seat.  The factory seat was horrible on that bike.  It was replaced by a Sargent seat the first week I had it. The Sargent seat brought the SV to the comfort level of my stock GS seat.  The greatest advantage to the SV is the power.  It pulls harder and longer than the GS anywhere in the power band.  Below 5,000 RPM's the SV vibrates horribly.  That also makes 6th gear useless unless you are going over 65 MPH.  My biggest problem with the SV is the handling.  The stock SV suspension is plusher on rough surfaces than the GS but the SV is a lot harder to plant in the turns.  The SV always feels top heavy to me and I have trouble getting/holding a good line in sharp turns.  I find myself correcting half way through the turns. I've gotten more used to the SV now but I still prefer the GS in the twisties.  I plan on taking the GS on my next trip to West Virginia    I'll post some pics below

-Jessie


The SV packed and ready to go


One of my riding buddies and a friend of his came on the trip.  He has a Cocours14 and his buddy had a Shadow 1300.  My "bigger" bike was still the runt of the group.  And don't let the size of that Concours fool you, it can accelerate and corner like it's ZX-14 Ninja cousin


We stayed at the Boyer Station Motel, Restaurant & Camp Ground




The highest point in West Virginia, Spruce Knob look out




The Green Bank radio telescope, the largest movable object in the U.S.


This thing is huge, you can see it from miles away.  Unfortunately the zoom on my camera sucks...


Another dish listening for alien life


This is Rella's.  It is literally a trailer in the middle of no where that sells really good food.  Some riders we met at the campfire told us about the place and we hunted it out for lunch the next day  



They also told us about a place in a little town called Helvatia that sells "the best peach cobbler you will ever have."  The one guy rides up from North Carolina just for the cobbler. So of course we had to find that place too


It was on that journey my shift lever fell off.  The threaded stud backed out of the mounting hole in the foot peg bracket.  Unfortunately I did not have snap ring pliers in my emergency tool bag to correctly reinstall it so I did what I could with an open end wrench.  It held the rest of the trip


What do you get when you combine a turkey, a rooster and a duck???


Well it is a "GS"...


The town of Durbin









Giving the bikes and our butts a break



It was getting dark by the time we got to the Cass train depot




Views like these are everywhere





Back at home in one piece


I do like the dual trip odometers.  I use one to track miles since last fill up and the other for total trip miles


There is a reason racers keep the balls of their feet on the pegs, it saves the tips of their boots  


Thanks for looking!

[badguy]

Nice report!  WV is a great state when it comes to riding.

[kyle_99_gtp]

great pictures! looks like the trip was a blast, i can't wait until i ride somewhere that actually has scenery.

[Canonball]

i have family in that area, its breathtaking around there. the highest point you were at is where my grandpa took my grandma on their first date lol nice pics, looks like it was a goood ride

[joshr08]

great pics looks like you guys had a great time.

[ver4]

Nice pictures. 

[BaltimoreGS]

Thanks guys, I hope to make another trip down in September on the GS500.  I'll be leaving out of Bedford, PA and heading down Rt. 220 the next time if anyone cares to join me.  Later

-Jessie

[Toogoofy317]

Awesome I so want to go on a nice scenic trip but doesn't seem like there is much 'terrain' here in Florida. Guess need to go up to Georgia or something! Guess could do the Keys!

Great pics! Glad you had a great time!

Mary

[Lukewarm Wilson]

Nice Pics almost reminds me of riding in the south of NSW except your area is a little greener. But I'm still waiting to hear how good the cobbler was

[johnny ro]

great shots, great trip. I lived in charleston for 18 months once, WV is a great place.

On the SV shakes, that sounds wrong, something needs adjusting? They don't all shake under 5k. I hope you are part of SVrider by now, learn and get all you want there. My 2001 responded really really well to carb work. You can find cure for those shakes.  Also get it set up for perfect turning/corners. Its a sweet bike.

[bucks1605]

Awesome, thanks for sharing. Looks like you had a blast!

The shifter on my sv did that same thing the first time I took it out on a long ride. You need to get that stock sv suspension upgraded asap, that's the number one improvement you can make to those bikes!

[BaltimoreGS]

Thanks again guys (and gal), it was a great trip and a much needed break from my normal routine.

Mary- My girlfriend is somewhere near Daytona Beach this month (can't remember the area's name).  She drove the Geo though, not the GS    She said there is a lot of bikes around.

Johnny- Sorry if I sound negative on the SV, it is actually a nice bike. I haven't put any real work into it because I doubt I will keep it long, it was just one of those deals that was too good to pass up.  I was actually in the market for that new Katana-less Katana, the GSX-650F.  I thought sag was all you could set on it's suspension though?  I haven't done much research on it.  This one is fuel injected so there isn't to much to dial in, it just seems to like being above 5k rpm's.  

Bucks- Glad I'm not the only one    I put some lock tite on the shifter when I got back. The stock suspension is fair but there is a lot of room for improvement.  Suzuki always seems to skimp on suspension on their lower end bikes, I've heard the same complaint about the Gladius.

Be safe out there guys!

-Jessie

[BaltimoreGS]

Nice Pics almost reminds me of riding in the south of NSW except your area is a little greener. But I'm still waiting to hear how good the cobbler was

The cobbler was amazingly good, and I don't usually care for peach cobbler!  The best part was the homemade whipped cream on top.  Delicious!!  They said the peaches are soaked in brandy for 5 days before they make the cobbler.  I don't know that I'd ride from 3 states away to get it but if I we're in the area I would make a point to stop in again   

-Jessie

[BaltimoreGS]

And one other SV note I forgot, I averaged about 43 mpg which while still respectable is 10 less than I get on the GS.

-Jessie